BEST project gearing up for completion in time for Oct. 7-8 open house tours

Holyoke School District’s Building Excellent Schools Today project is still somewhere in the 90-something percent complete range, reported owner’s representative Ryan Smelker at the Sept. 21 school board meeting.

He said they will be pushing hard to be as close to finished as possible for the district’s open house tours during homecoming week on Thursday and Friday, Oct. 7-8.

On the budget side of the project, Smelker estimates that the district could have about an additional $100,000 to spend within the BEST grant.

He highlighted a bullet point list of potential items for consideration. They include:

— Additional benches and lockers in each of the junior high locker rooms.

— Roller shades at the front entry, principal, counselor and trainer offices.

— Auditorium handrail/added step.

— Scoreboard clocks in locker rooms and referee rooms.

— Donor wall design and installation.

— Trophy case (electronic system). Smelker indicated this might not fall in the scope of BEST fund usage.

Another item for consideration that is not on the initial bullet point list is a hoodless warming oven for the warming kitchen.

Citing the local area spending report during the construction, Smelker noted that close to $430,000 has been spent locally.

Donor wall being designed

Wold Architects & Engineers is working on a design for a donor wall as part of the BEST project.

Stumpf reported that they’re considering a dragon with a full tail, then having various sizes and colors of tiles to be added on the tail for varied levels of donor recognition.

He noted that the wall can continue to be expanded as new donations come in over an extended period of time.

It was suggested that it would be advantageous to have a mock-up of the donor wall where it’s going to be located at the time of next week’s open house tours. This would give supporters an idea of how recognition for a donation might look.

Gym floor finished

Stumpf reported that there were some imperfections on the new gym floor after last spring’s volleyball season, and the flooring company wanted to wait to repair it until construction was done and dust was no longer an issue.

They came in several weeks ago and put a new coat of wax down. Everyone stayed off the floor for five days, and it was ready for the volleyball team’s home opener Sept. 18.

Stumpf said it turned out really well, and they heard lots of positive comments from spectators.

Other business

In other business at the Sept. 21 meeting, the school board:

— Heard from drama director Micah Mehl and 11 members of the cast and crew for the Nov. 19-20 performance of “Clue.”

­— Hired Michelle Gregg as a full-time route bus driver for 2021-22.

— Approved a resolution addressing remote learning during the 2021-22 school year. It acknowledges attendance for students participating in classes remotely.

— Discussed the timelines for the board opening when Pat Wiebers’ term ends Nov. 2 since she was term-limited and couldn’t seek reelection. Incumbents Jon Kleve and Brady Ring are seeking reelection, and no other candidates submitted nomination petitions.

The board has 60 days following the vacancy (Nov. 2) to appoint a person to fill the board seat.

— Gave first-reading approval for policies presented Sept. 7 on support staff supplementary pay/overtime, school year/school calendar/instruction time, concurrent enrollment and parent engagement in education.

— Heard the introduction of the Colorado Association of School Boards revised policy on administering medications to students.